A church in Texas had a huge surprise for their community this Easter- they raised the money to pay off medical debt for more then 4,000 local families. Relevant Magazine reports that Pastor Stephen Hayes was in a car accident as a teen and his church family helped with medical debt, a blessing that he wanted to pay forward.

Instead of spending the $100,000 that the church usually spends advertising in the lead-up to Easter, Hayes suggested sending out a letter that said something like “We are Covenant Church and we are local in this area and can serve you in any way, and we would love to be your church. But even if we don’t get to meet you, just know that God loves you.”

The congregation raised $10,551,618 in total debt. That means that 4,229 families in the Carrollton, Texas area will be receiving letters telling them that their debt has been paid off. The first recipients were local veterans who had been injured in war. After every veteran in a 20-mile radius of the church had their medical bills covered, money went to other families in need.

“That’s your letter in the mail,” Hayes preached. “If you can imagine what those people this week will be feeling when they receive the letter that you sent them saying their debt is paid. I prayed 100-fold that [is how] you would feel in the reading the letter He wrote to you in the book of John 19:30. Hey, your debt of sin is paid. You are covered.”